Five years to cross the street...

It’s late. It’s very, very late. And I think I have a job interview tomorrow. I’m not entirely certain of that fact but it seems highly likely that I will receive a call tomorrow in which my being awake would be beneficial. So I am just going to write one quick story for the night because there is no better night than this one to retell it.

Five years ago today I packed up my car and drove from my parents’ house to Kansas City. Now while my car was packed it was only packed with the items that I felt were necessities in that they must travel with me and not the moving company. If I remember correctly that entailed mainly my computer, parts of my stereo and my Duke Basketball poster. Some paperwork and financial stuff of course but really, that was all I was concerned with and it was a Grand Am so it wasn’t like I was going to fit much in there to begin with. So I made the eight hour drive, pulled into my apartment, picked up the keys and moved into my place.

After unloading my car (and getting introduced once again to the brutal Kansas City summer) I took a look at my apartment. At this point I realized I would need a few things. Food being one of them. A chair being another. See, my movers weren’t going to arrive for several days and I neglected to pack something to sit on. Or sleep on for that matter as while I had blankets and a pillow I did not technically have a bed to sleep in.

So if I remember correctly I drove to Target that first night just to pick up the barest of essentials in terms of food (I recall Doritos playing a vital role in my diet over the next several days as I was also lacking plates, silverware, or any type of cooking instruments) and the ugliest deck chair imaginable as I would otherwise have to stand all the time. Then I did what many people still consider legendary.

I walked down to Kelly’s, which was just a few blocks from my apartment, and I sat down at the bar. I ordered a beer and a pack of cigarettes (this was back during that brief moment in which I tried to smoke under the mistaken impression that it made me look cool) and just sat there and relaxed. Eventually the bartender came over, asked about my story and I went

“I just moved here. My furniture isn’t arriving for a few days so I’m drinking until the floor looks comfortable.”

I was treated well for the rest of the night, the rest of the week and quickly became a regular. It was a rather good introduction to the town.

That was five years ago tonight. I didn’t quite expect to be here five years later especially not in the same apartment. But it just happened to turn out that way. How did I spend my five year anniversary? By sitting in Harry’s and having a beer. There are two big differences though. First off, I can’t smoke in the bars anymore thanks to the new law. And tonight I had much better company than I could ever have hoped for. And that truly makes all the difference in the world.

I really can’t tell you where I am going next. I’m interviewing across the country on a daily basis. Everything is up for grabs at the moment. But I’ll have to admit, the past few months have made the five years here worthwhile.